Former President Goodluck Jonathan attributes voter turnout in Nigeria to the existence of too many ghost voters on the election registry.
On Tuesday, February 25, Jonathan spoke at the West African Democratic Election Conference in Abuja, highlighting the challenges facing the election process in the region despite technological advances.
Jonathan acknowledged that West Africa has made significant progress in democratic governance, but pointed to logistical issues, technical failures and allegations of violations persist. He mentioned Nigeria’s 2023 general election, which introduced the BBVA and INEC Results Viewing (IREV) portal, as well as the use of technology in the Sierra Leone elections. However, he contrasted these with the elections in Ghana, which he described as successful despite the limited use of technology.
“The Election Commission of Ghana and the security authorities has played a crucial role in ensuring elections are free and fair, which shows that Ghana’s democratic process remains resilient even with limited technology,” he said. “Others in Liberia and Senegal Both countries also held elections with limited technology deployment. In these countries, these processes are often peaceful, transparent, and voter turnout is high. In some countries, we see technology in improving transparency and accountability. strength.
The use of biometric voter registration, electronic voting systems and real-time outcome dissemination helps build public trust in the election process. These innovative work should be celebrated and replicated throughout the region. On the other hand, we also witness the dangers of political intolerance, hate speech, and the manipulation of racial and religious divisions on electoral interests. ”
Jonathan noted that Liberia, Senegal and Ghana have recorded turnout and a smooth transition to power by high-scoring voters due to public enthusiasm for democracy. However, he noted that in countries with excellent technology, the election process often sparked more legal struggles, political tensions and controversy.
He stressed the importance of human factors in deepening democratic institutions, recalling the technological advances in Nigeria from the lack of voter registers to the introduction of card readers. “We have moved above the card reader to BVA, which is expected to be more advanced, but there are more problems than when we use the card reader,” he said. “If we look at the election, I think we are developing the technology. Although We are improving in adopting technology, but the result is backwards, which is not what we expect.”
Jonathan stressed that it is necessary to lead the Election Commission for the purpose of making an election a free, impartial, and credible individual. “If we don’t have such people, then we’re in trouble. If you accept the chairman of INEC or become a commissioner of INEC, then you should be ready and if I’m forced to do something wrong, I’ll take care of the Democratic people,” he explain.
He also raised concerns about the authenticity of the Nigerian voter register, saying, “We have too many ghost voters.” “So whenever the situation is strong, both sides are strong and you can’t manipulate the system, only real humans are Will get a vote. The real human will leave 50% behind,” he added.
